Proactive Open Houses: Why Week One Wins in Wilmington

0:00Welcome back to Real Stories. Just a quick heads up that this program was created with AI assistance and uses a synthetic narrator. The content was reviewed and approved by Buddy Blake before publication. Information is believed accurate, but should be independently verified. This program does not provide legal, tax, lending, or appraisal advice. Today, we're hanging out with Buddy Blake to talk about something that's honestly pretty fascinating. Proactive open houses, and why the timing of when you list a home can make or break your whole selling strategy.

0:35Hey, thanks for having me. Yeah, so this is something I'm really passionate about because I see so many agents get it wrong. The core idea is simple. The first weekend your listing goes live is absolutely crucial. It's not about doing open houses constantly, it's about doing them at the right time. And that first weekend is when you've got the most momentum. Okay, so you're saying it's timing over activity. That actually reminds me, you've got this whole post about listing strategy over on your site that I think ties into this. But walk me through why that first

1:08weekend is so critical. Like, what's actually happening in that moment? So here's the thing. When you list a home, especially a new listing, there's this massive surge in online traffic and interest. People are actively searching. They're planning their weekends around open houses. They're looking at Zillow, Realtor.com, all the major portals. And we track this obsessively.

1:32We see when people are most engaged. Thursdays and Fridays are huge days for open house searches because folks are planning their weekend house hunting trips. Especially here in the Wilmington area where we get a lot of people driving in from the northeast. They're planning what they want to see. And if your house isn't out there as a fresh listing with an open house scheduled, you're missing that way. Oh, wow. Okay. So it's like you're catching people when they're already in the mindset, already planning. I love that. But you gave this example once about a video store.

2:04Can you explain that? Because it actually makes total sense as an analogy. Yeah. So years ago, I worked in a video store. And when new releases would hit, everybody would come in rain or shine that first weekend. People were willing to pay more, willing to do whatever it took to get the new release because there was nothing else out there. It was a new product and it had urgency.

2:26Real estate works exactly the same way. When your home is the new listing, you're the new release. You want to be in stock. You want to be visible. You want to be in front of people when that demand is highest. That's such a good comparison, honestly. So when should someone actually hold an open house? I'm guessing you're not saying every weekend all the time. Exactly.

2:48There are really only two times you should do an open house. Number one is that very first weekend your listing hits the market. As long as you've got your marketing ready to go and everything's in place. Number two is if you do a substantial price change. That creates new urgency, new interest. But here's what I see all the time. Houses sitting on the market for months, sellers getting frustrated, and then the agent starts doing open houses just to appease the seller. You know, like, hey, look, we're doing something. But that's not strategy. That's just

3:24activity. Right. And that's the opposite of what you're talking about. So if a house isn't getting showings or getting appointments on Zillow or Realtor.com, an open house isn't going to fix that, is it? No, it's not. If a house is sitting on the market and not getting real agent showings or online appointments, it's usually a price issue, a location issue, or a condition issue.

3:49An open house isn't going to solve any of those. You're just spinning your wheels. That's why I'm so focused on doing open houses right. Meaning doing them when they actually matter, when there's real momentum behind them. Okay, so walk me through what doing it right actually looks like. Like, what are the tactics? So first, you put a sign up in front of the house early in the week, assuming signs are permitted, that says the house will be open Saturday or Sunday between specific times. You'd be surprised how many people drive by and see that. Parents driving home from school,

4:23neighbors who have friends looking in the area, they see that sign and they start talking about it. Then we do something called reverse prospecting. We have this intricate CRM system with AI technology that lets us see everyone who's been looking on all the portals, Zillow, Realtor.com, our website, in specific areas and price ranges. And we notify those people directly about the open house. So you're building momentum toward the event. Oh, that's smart. So you're not just hoping people show up, you're actually reaching out to people who are already

4:57interested in that area and price range. You're giving them a reason to come see your specific house. Exactly. And look, if you think that just doing open houses for the sake of doing open houses, with no urgency behind it, no real strategy, you're going to be disappointed. The little things matter, the timing matters, the marketing matters. But most importantly, you've got to have a real reason to do it. Either it's a brand new listing with momentum, or it's a substantial price change. Otherwise, you're just creating activity, not results.

5:33This is really practical stuff. And honestly, it ties into a lot of what you talk about on your blog about listing strategy and pricing. We've got links to some of that in the show notes if people want to dig deeper. Buddy, this was awesome. Thanks so much for breaking this down. Yeah, thanks for having me. I think a lot of sellers and agents need to hear this because it's such a common mistake. Do it right, do it when it matters, and you'll see real results.